May Book Reviews For Fleet Life and EH Directory

Here are the books which made it to my magazine book review pages for the month of May.

For the online version of Fleet Life go to http://www.fleetlife.org.uk, click on the online directory, load and turn to page 32

Last Child by Terry Tyler

The Faerie Tree by Jane Cable

The Last Dragon Slayer by Martyn Stanley

A Spell in Provence by Marie Laval

Back Behind Enemy Lines by Chris Bridge

For the online version of EH Directory go to http://www.ehd.org.uk, click on the online directory, load and turn to page 9

The Gift Of Charms by Julia Suzuki

Two Rivers by Zoe Saadia

The Magic and Mystery of Birds by Noah Strycker

Death in a Dacron Sail by N.A Granger

Britannia Part II: The Watchmen by Richard Denham

The Magic & Mystery Of Birds by Noah Strycker

The Magic & Mystery Of Birds is a non-fiction book which studies bird behaviour. The easy to read book compares many different birds with similar human characteristics through scientific experiments and observation.

Noah has studied birds for many years from all around the world. He has looked at Starling Murmuration or their flock dancing and how they have adapted well to life in US cities. He proves that vultures don’t hunt by smell, but by sight. I learnt that Hummingbirds are small power house fighters, taking part in aerial dog-fights and bullying at feeders.

My favourite chapter was the one on penguins, as it says in the book “It’s hard to be angry with a penguin”. Noah describes them as childlike in their innocent curiosity but they have a genuine fear of seals who will stalk penguins and are a real threat.

There is even a chapter on the common chicken and a look at the literal pecking order of the species. There were several birds types which I hadn’t heard of, the Nutcrackers sounded fun with their spatial memory usage which helped them locate stashes of seeds hoarded to help them survive the winter months.

You don’t have to be an avid bird watcher to enjoy this book, just someone curious to learn a little more about our feathered friends.

A copy of this book was given to me for review by Souvenir Press.

Find a copy here from Amazon.co.uk or Amazon.com

Good Deeds Challenge Year 2, Week 45

Welcome to my second Year of Good Deeds, a challenge I set myself during April 2013. I decided to do at least one Good Deed a day for a whole year, now I am into my second year.

This week I’ve been doing the following;

February 22nd – Today I’ve been reading Seventh Mark by W.J May a YA paranormal fantasy. I was going to visit my parents this afternoon and help out with a little computer issue, but when I went to get my car I found it really sick and unsafe to drive. I’ve sent a text to my friendly mechanic who I hope can get the car fixed early this week. No car will be a challenge but then I can do with out for a short while and get more reading done.

February 23rd – I finished reading The Cheesemaker’s House by local author Jane Cable today. My car fell sick and was taken away to be mended, Good deeds received, the mechanic feed up some time and got my car back on the road this afternoon.

February 24th – I’m reading Two Rivers by Zoe Saadie. Got a new book in the post today.

February 25th – Collected up boxes and bags for the relatives who are soon moving house, so that they can start sorting their items, offered to help when they need it.

February 26th – I’m reading The Thing with feathers by Noah Strycker, a non-fiction book looking at our feathered friends.

February 27th – Tipped my hairdresser who did a marvellous job of tidying my mop of hair. Giving a friend some help with Twitter.

February 28th – Hosting a sleepover this evening for a birthday celebration. Am reading A Spell In Provence by Marie Laval